


The Rabbit Mask

by joggerwriting



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Confused Arthur Pendragon (Merlin), Crack Fic, I am so sorry, Innocent Merlin (Merlin), Inspired by Twitter, M/M, Or Is he?, Parent Gaius (Merlin), what is gaius doing with that rabbit mask though?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-26
Updated: 2020-10-26
Packaged: 2021-03-09 02:47:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,268
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27217411
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/joggerwriting/pseuds/joggerwriting
Summary: This fic is inspired by a completely wild and spiralling-out-of-hand discussion we had on a merlin twitter gc. I'm trying to keep it as PG as possible, okay?Prompt: Remember how in season 1 there was a shot of Gaius's table, and there were some inexplicable stuff like a rabbit mask on the table, among others? Yeah, let's see a scene where Merlin gets to call out Gaius's.....rabbit problem - featuring, borderline not-PG innuendos, Gaius epically failing to explain to an innocent!Merlin, and poor, poor Arthur.Crack, kind of.
Relationships: Alice/Gaius (Merlin), Gaius & Merlin (Merlin), Merlin/Arthur Pendragon (Merlin)
Comments: 16
Kudos: 79
Collections: favorite Merlin fics (Luciferskitten_Arthursprincess)





	The Rabbit Mask

**Author's Note:**

  * For [mmmmay](https://archiveofourown.org/users/mmmmay/gifts).



> I am blaming you all druids at the forest rave. Be very ashamed.
> 
> Challenge: how many innuendos can you spot? This fic is completely innocent, don't worry :)

* * *

"Gaius?"

The elderly man did not look up from the thick tome he was pouring over, but he made a sound of acknowledgment as his eyes flickered a bit to his charge, who seemed to be deep in contemplation.

That should have been the first sign that things were about to go very wrong.

Merlin was rarely quiet in contemplation. When he was deep in thought, he would either pace around or tap his fingers to the table. But alas, Gaius was a bit sleep-deprived that night since a rash outbreak had swept across the lower town earlier this week.

"Merlin," Gaius finally looked up with a sigh after a long silence had passed. " _What_ is it?"

"Oh! I've just been wondering...," Merlin trailed off, looking at Gaius hesitantly. 

"Yes?"

Gaius prepared himself for another rant about Arthur; or in general, his charge's frustration of keeping his magic secret in Camelot. He loved Merlin, truly, like a son he never had - but he was getting a bit too repetitive with Arthur this, Arthur that...every single night. Please forgive an old man for struggling to put up with the back-and-forth dance the crown prince and his manservant slash secret protector were having. Youngsters, these days.

He was _not_ prepared, however, when Merlin sheepishly raised his arm, and there it was, in his grasp: his precious, very secret, rabbit mask he must have accidentally left on the table.

"This mask looks funny," said Merlin admiringly. "Is this yours? I've never seen you wear it, though. What is it for?"

Gaius paled.

"That is, uh..."

"Hmm, this looks old," rambled Merlin, "Can't feel any magic emanating from it, though. Not for some kind of weird ritual required for a potion or something magic-"

"-Merlin, Merlin!" interrupted Gaius in panic, his mind thinking hard. "That is, uh, actually, for the patients."

He quickly rounded to his young charge with surprising agility for his age, and snatched the rabbit mask out of Merlin's surprised grasp.

"For the patients? I've never seen something like this in my books," wondered Merlin with a frown, his gaze still following the mask curiously. "Oh! Might've been some technique I haven't known yet then. Can you teach me how to use the mask?"

The elder man almost choked.

"No!" he let out a shout.

Merlin stopped, tilted his head in confusion. "No?"

Gaius took a deep breath. How to get out of this situation without tainting his ward's virtue....

"For the _young_ patients, Merlin. As in _children_ ," he made up a lie with as much dignity as he could. "As a physician, there will be times when we need to give treatments that such children might not appreciate. That is where the mask is used. Now off you go to bed, Merlin."

Merlin, however, didn't move. He stared at Gaius with both eyebrows up. "You used a rabbit mask to give treatment to children? Like... to entertain them?"

"...yes."

"I am really having a hard time picturing you as a giant rabbit, Gaius."

Gaius glared with one raised eyebrow, inwardly wishing Merlin would drop the conversation altogether.

"Yes," he said through gritted teeth. "Now bed, Merlin. It's past your bedtime and the prince's got tasks for you to do tomorrow."

Merlin looked affronted. "I'm capable of keeping track of my bedtime. I'm not a child anymore." Then, in an astounding display of having the attention span of a goldfish, Merlin's face suddenly brightened. "Hey, do you mind if I borrow that mask tomorrow?"

" _What?_ Merlin, no!"

"...but-"

"-to bed, now," said Gaius with a heaving breath.

Merlin glared at his mentor indignantly and with no small amount of confusion, but he complied anyway.

* * *

Gaius huffed a relieved sigh. He traced the leather mask with his fingers - now that Merlin was safely in his chamber - and he sat down while staring at the fireplace. His mind wandered to the memory of his beloved Alice, of the wild things they used to do in their youth - so free, so unhindered; even if some of the activities they did involve tying each other in turns with robes and masks.

This rabbit mask, specifically, used to belong to Alice.

So lost in his memories, Gaius inadvertently nodded off sleeping, the mask loosely held by his aging hands.

Unbeknownst to the elder mentor, Merlin was determined. Oh yes, he was so going to get that mask because he had this brilliant plan you see - this brilliant and hilarious prank that would involve a certain prattish prince and his bed.

Oh yes, Arthur would wake up to a Merlin with that rabbit mask on, and he would make that clotpole _scream_ \- in fright.

It would be such a _funny_ surprise.

Merlin almost giggled imagining how Gaius must have looked entertaining children with that mask on. It was his turn to _entertain_ Arthur now, because, well, that prat was a giant baby.

Therefore, he executed his plan in the dark of the night, creeping down the stairs and to his delight, he found Gaius asleep on his chair, with that mask safely within his grasp. Merlin gently coaxed his magic to ease his mentor to the sofa, placing a blanket over the elderly man.

Surely, Gaius wouldn't mind him borrowing his rabbit mask for one innocent prank, would he?

* * *

"Wakey, wakey!"

The crown prince of Camelot groaned and buried himself on the soft pillows deeper. There was the sound of the curtains being pulled, and then Arthur felt Merlin's hands grasping his blanket and pulling.

"Wake up, Sire! Time to rise and shine!"

".... Merlin, shut up."

"Ah, ah, ah, can't do that, Sire," chirped the annoying voice of his manservant again. "Wake up! Up and at 'em!"

With some difficulties, Arthur opened his heavy eyes. The blurry figure of Merlin came into view - as usual, the young man was wearing that silly neckerchief. Arthur gazed went up and..

...all trace of sleep suddenly drained away from his mind.

" _Mer_ lin..."

"Yes, sire?" Merlin's cheeky grin was visible through...through... was that a fucking rabbit mask he wore?

"What the hell," Arthur began slowly, "are you wearing?"

"Ah, this," said Merlin airily and casually, just like stating that the sky was blue. "Do I make a good rabbit?"

Arthur flinched.

"You can't say things like that, _Mer_ -lin!" Arthur choked out. "Where the _hell_ did you get that?"

"It's Gaius'. You see, he loves to entertain with this, so I thought I should wear it to _entertain_ you while you're _in bed_. Does it work? I do make a cute rabbit, if I do say so myself."

Merlin wiggled his butt for emphasis.

"Oh gods" Arthur managed to say with an embarrassingly high-pitched tone.

"Don't you want to catch me? Like you caught all of those poor, defenseless animals in the forest," Merlin ended his sentence with a glare.

Arthur groaned. What the fuck? His manservant was.... truly something else. Merlin continued to wiggle so Arthur, in increasing panic, shot out of bed and grabbed the source of his suffering and firmly sat him down on the bed.

"Wow," Merlin put his hands on his hips. "Had I known that it would be this easy _waking you up_ with this mask, I should put it on regularly."

Arthur could only gape at his bunny-masked manservant speechlessly.

Thankfully, at the moment, Gaius barged into the room loudly, and he took one look at Merlin who was perched on the edge of Arthur bed with the bunny mask on, and a shirtless Arthur who was still frozen, _figuratively_ chained on the bed.

He stopped in horror.

"MERLIN!" 

* * *

**Author's Note:**

> The end. 
> 
> Plot twist: Merlin knew exactly what he was doing the whole time because he's a little shit.


End file.
